Sam Okudzeto, a member of the Council of State, has voiced his dissatisfaction of the anti-LGBTQ+ bill’s passage and questioned its necessity and appropriateness.
He believes there is no justification for the government to meddle in the private matters of consenting individuals, hence this kind of law should never have been proposed in the first place.
In an interview with TV3 on Wednesday, May 8, Mr. Okudzeto expressed his concerns over the perceived connection between people’s personal connections and the overall economy.
He emphasized the significance of individual liberties and private rights in his argument that the activities of two adults in the privacy of their bedroom should not be subject to governmental oversight or regulation.
Mr. Okudzeto turned his emphasis to the clergy and questioned their exclusive focus on homosexuality as a sin that calls for legal punishment.
He questioned if the clergy addressed other sins mentioned in the Bible with the same vigor and initiative.
Mr. Okudzeto called for a reevaluation of national priorities, arguing that the focus on anti-LGBTQ+ legislation diverts from addressing important socio-economic challenges that affect all Ghanaians. He insisted that there are more important and pressing issues facing the country that demand attention and resources.
“Even the churches, who are frantically pleading with the president to sign the law, have been coerced into doing so by us. What have they been doing about all the sins that are stated in the Bible? LGBTQI is all that they have witnessed? We talk about corruption all the time; everyone is implicated in it, from the messenger to the top.
Is it my business when a man and woman go to sleep in the bedroom? What impact does it have on the economy? In what way does that cause me to stop eating? Does that have an impact on my learning? I so hold a very different opinion. I believe the idea itself is wholly unrelated to the problem.We focus on the fact that a lady or a man sitting with another woman is a national concern. “The LGBTQI issue is absurd; it never should have arisen in the first place,” he declared.
The bill that outlaws the advocacy and practice of LGBTQ+ has been unanimously approved by Parliament.
Due to two persons contesting the bill’s constitutionality, it is presently awaiting President Akufo-Addo’s assent.